A Shadow Coming
by Namazukage
Summary: Spying on Jackson Lake inadvertently leads the Doctor to a planet with a tragic fate, for which he has another role to play.
1. The Mistaken Delivery

Notes: This takes place right after Death of the Doctor. There are significant spoilers for The Next Doctor and vague non-spoilery references to Death of the Doctor. Characters you recognize don't belong to me. Thanks for reading.

Chapter 1: The Mistaken Delivery

The Doctor took his time strolling through the streets of London, 1852. It was snowing, like the last time he visited London in this era. It was also a little bit colder, but the Doctor paid it no attention as he headed towards Jackson Lake's home. He stayed discreetly near the bushes to watch Jackson writing a letter and his son reading a book. Distracted, the Doctor didn't notice a woman approaching him from behind, so he was surprised by a familiar voice piercing the air.

"Oy! What do you think you're doing? Who are you?"

The Doctor quickly turned around and saw Rosita standing in front of him. "Rosita!"

"You haven't answered my questions!"

"It's me, I'm the Doctor."

Rosita sighed in exasperation. "Another one?"

"No, no. I'm the same one as before."

Rosita narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

"Cybershade traps, tethered aerial release, all those suitcases? The TARDIS had the same color as the scarf you're wearing. Do you remember the twelve faces on that infostamp? I'm the one that came after that last one."

It took a few more seconds before Rosita finally believed him, and the Doctor was thankful that he didn't have to explain more. He reckoned Rosita would have forgotten about the Cyber-King.

"I'm on my way to the shop, Doctor. Shall I take you to Mr. Lake?"

"No, I just wanted to check in on him. I saw some old friends of mine recently, and they reminded me of Jackson. How's he been doing?"

"Very well, Doctor. His son, is, too. He's doing well in school."

"And you?"

"I'm happy, Doctor. I'm enjoying this stable life."

The Doctor could see in Rosita's eyes a slight yearning, similar to what he saw in Astrid. "But you would have liked to have taken a ride in Jackson's TARDIS, yes? See some of what's out there?"

Rosita looked away and came close to smiling.

"Would you like a trip in my TARDIS?"

"Thank you, Doctor, but I do need to finish my errands."

"It can travel through time, Rosita. I can have you back now." A smile appeared on the Doctor's face, and it widened as he realized that Rosita couldn't refuse.

Soon, the TARDIS had landed, but Rosita was too busy wandering around the console, gazing in curiosity. For all her awe, however, the Doctor felt something was missing.

"There are more rooms, too," the Doctor began. "Lots. Are you impressed?"

"That you have a lot of rooms, Doctor?"

"That so many rooms can fit."

"I suppose."

"I have a garden and a library not too far away here."

"I've seen gardens and libraries before."

The Doctor finally gave up. "It's bigger on the inside, Rosita!"

"Well, of course it is."

"Isn't that strange to you?"

"No, it's like looking up the Doc– Mr. Lake's old TARDIS. When you look up, you see a small hole, but there's so much more behind it."

"But you can see what's behind it when you're looking at the balloon from the side."

"Why should that difference impress me?"

The Doctor sighed in defeat. "We're here."

Rosita's eyes lit up as she turned to look at the door. "Where are we?"

"It's a planet that I've been taught to call Corydin," the Doctor answered as he opened the door and stepped through.

Rosita followed the Doctor cautiously, but eagerly. Within minutes, she was walking along what she correctly guessed was a shopping center. Buildings were made of metal with crystals adorning the walls and doors in exquisite patterns and shapes. "What year is it, Doctor?"

"Just around 100 years into your past," the Doctor answered.

"These aliens all look like people back home."

After nearly an hour of walking around, Rosita was the first among the pair to notice a young girl running towards her and the Doctor as they continued their stroll.

The little girl held out a thick metal tube with a crystal embedded into the middle. "Can you hold this for me, kind sir?" she asked the Doctor.

Though hesitant, the Doctor smiled and nodded. As soon as he took possession, though, his smiled dropped as he started to recognize it as a power source, one with a configuration and a series of etches that he'd seen before. The Doctor didn't notice when the girl suddenly vanished into thin air.

Rosita was about to ask about the girl, but the Doctor's expression elicited a different question. "What's wrong, Doctor?"

"I didn't even see the crystal inside it when she gave it to me," the Doctor began quietly, almost talking to himself. "This is a tristerofaide tano module."

"What does it do? What's it used for?"

"Power, and lots of it."

Before Rosita could ask for more information, she and the Doctor noticed four armed men pointing at them and then running towards them. Still taken aback by the module, the Doctor opted to run, with Rosita following behind. They ran for two minutes before running into another pair of travelers, resulting in all four falling to the ground. One of them was a light-skinned man with a suit and floppy hair, the other a dark-skinned female with a coat, scarf, and long wavy hair. The collision allowed the four armed men to catch up.

"Stop!" one of the four, Hamanth, exclaimed.

"Captain, which ones are we after?" another man, Laiben asked.

As the Doctor and Rosita composed themselves, Hamanth noticed gold bracelets on the other two and pointed his gun at them. After further instructions from Hamanth, the other three men arrested the two, Tanthycna and Albenes.

"Where is the tristerofaide tano module?" Hamanth demanded of Tanthycna and Albenes.

Rosita flashed a quick look at the Doctor. She saw that he was not ready to reveal his possession, so she kept silent.

"We don't have it yet," Tanthycna answered sharply. "Leegat was supposed to send someone to give it to us, but no one's showed up yet."

Hamanth looked at the Doctor, then back to the arrested pair. "How will this person find you?"

Albenes and Tanthycna looked at each other.

"Answer me!" Hamanth exclaimed.

Tanthycna finally answered. "I think the courier will take the shape of a little girl. She is supposed to identify us based on our general looks and style of dress."

"That's all?" Hamanth asked.

"You know that less information works better in this system," Albenes said.

"Plein, Syvin, take them back to our offices," Hamanth ordered.

As Plein and Syvin followed their instructions, Hamanth addressed the Doctor and Rosita. "Who are you?"

"I'm the Doctor; this is Rosita. We're just traveling through."

"I am hopeful that the courier has merely been delayed, but not a witness to this scene," Hamanth explained. "My name is Hamanth Alsoryn and this is Laiben Leoda. As a senior officer of security here, I am asking if you two would be willing to walk around for a little while in the hopes that the courier will mistakenly give you the module."

"We can certainly spare the time, officer," the Doctor replied. He smiled at Rosita before turning back to Hamanth. "Do you know where the tristerofaide tano module came from?"

"That's not information that I am ready to disclose yet."

"Well, I am very knowledgeable about the module, and we are helping you."

Hamanth hesitated before giving in. "It appears that Tanthycna Hypex and Albenes Surabi purchased the module and a garis beacon to hold a planet hostage. The sellers have already implanted the garis beacon somewhere and sent the module here. The sellers are on the way into our custody. We will get more information once they arrive. Are you satisfied? "

"I could use my TARDIS to trace the connection between the module and the beacon. I could get to the beacon."

"We'd need the module first," Laiben interjected.

Rather quickly, the Doctor pulled out the module. "I've got it. The courier already came." The Doctor then took Rosita's hand and the two ran back into the TARDIS. As he stuck his key into the lock, he noticed that Hamanth and Laiben had caught up.

"We're going with you," Hamanth said.

The Doctor opened his mouth to protest.

Hamanth interrupted. "I am responsible for resolving this situation. We are going with you."

The Doctor relented and let the two men inside.

Laiben gasped audibly as he entered. "It's . . ."

The Doctor stopped to look at him.

"Focus on our priorities, Laiben," Hamanth interrupted.

The Doctor groaned in frustration and turned to the TARDIS console. He connected one wire to an end of the module. Within seconds a monitor started flashing and the Doctor initiated dematerialization.

"It'll take some more time for an exact identification, but we're already en route by homing in on the beacon."

Soon, the TARDIS stopped before the screen identified the location. The Doctor ran outside and his heart sank as he gazed upon the landscape.

"Where are we, Doctor?" Hamanth asked.

"The planet is called Stricium," the Doctor answered quietly. "It's the home of the Solarium Panatica, and I fear I've come to bring about its destruction."


	2. Stricks and Corydaans

Chapter 2: Stricks and Corydaans

Rosita, Hamanth, and Laiben waited outside the TARDIS as the Doctor took out a small machine and attached it to the module. His face, pale at first, finally regained its color. The Doctor ran back out and pointed towards a cave.

"The beacon is over there," the Doctor remarked. Hamanth and Laiben charged ahead while the Doctor hesitated and Rosita stayed with him.

"Doctor, what did you mean about this planet's destruction?"

"Never mind that, Rosita. We should catch up."

The Doctor and Rosita ran towards the cave until shots rang out from the cave, hitting Laiben just under his neck. The Doctor, Rosita, and Hamanth gathered around Laiben as he gasped.

"Is there anything you can do, Doctor?" Rosita asked. "Do you need anything from the TARDIS?"

The Doctor closed his eyes as Laiben took his last breaths. "He never had a chance." The Doctor opened his eyes to laser shots, this time coming from Hamanth. Eventually, the shooting stopped.

Hamanth took out a scope and stared into the cave. "I've killed two there. I don't see any other movement," he said as the Doctor frowned at him.

"Was that necessary?"

Hamanth didn't hear the Doctor's admonishment. He already took off towards the cave with the Doctor and Rosita following and confirmed that there were no other individuals. Hamanth then saw a metal box and tried to open it while the Doctor investigated the corpses.

"Hamanth," the Doctor said. "Are the sellers Corydaans?"

"We don't know yet, Doctor. Why do you ask?"

"Leegat is an uncommon surname on Stricium, but it exists here just like on Corydin. These two are Stricks, not Corydaans."

"How can you make that distinction?" Hamanth asked.

"Just trust me," the Doctor replied, rather coldly.

"Why is where they're from important, Doctor?" Rosita asked.

"This would be inconsistent with the plans laid out."

"The sellers wouldn't have trusted Stricks with the responsibility to risk blowing up their own planet," Hamanth mentioned.

"Unless the sellers themselves were Stricks they knew well," the Doctor added. "Hamanth, do the buyers know the beacon is here?"

"Yes, they should."

"We need confirmation about the sellers. I can take us back to Corydin so you can determine the sellers' origin."

"That won't be necessary. The sellers were apprehended from an administrative unit on this planet, Amel. I am close with the Corydaan liaison to the United Teams of Amelians."

Within minutes, Hamanth confirmed that the sellers, Neshodin Leegat and Revee Meersod, were Stricks and he went back to trying to open the metal box. The Doctor noticed Hamanth's struggles, but chose to contemplate the information he received first.

"Stricks planning on exploding their own planet . . . " the Doctor said, "unless they weren't actually going to do it, but the two buyers evidently trusted them with it."

"Perhaps that trust was irrelevant. What the sellers were doing was irrelevant to the buyers. They had their own agenda," Hamanth posited.

"Betrayal," the Doctor said quietly.

Rosita joined the conversation. "You think the buyers were going to betray the sellers?"

"It's possible," the Doctor said.

Hamanth finally opened the box. Inside lay a large circular crystal enveloping a metal machine that held red and yellow lights.

"That's beautiful," Rosita remarked.

"We should take this to Amel," Hamanth suggested. "My allies there will be able to take care of this and the module."

"You're relinquishing control of this investigation?"

"I have everything I need, now it's a matter of handling these possessions appropriately."

Before anyone could notice, a small metallic ball was thrown into the cave. As soon as it landed on the ground, gray smoke blew out of it. The smoke dissipated after rising only inches, but it nonetheless knocked Hamanth and Rosita out. Three Corydaans in suits and headpieces covering their faces entered. As soon as they saw the Doctor standing conscious, they pulled out their weapons.

"There's no need for that," the Doctor said.

"Stay where you are," one of them, Revis, told him as one of them, Turengent, secured the beacon and the other, Mysoll, searched Hamanth and Rosita.

"I don't see the tano module," Mysoll stated after looking around Rosita. "Our communication suggested Leegat could still have it."

"Where is it?" Revis asked the Doctor.

The Doctor contemplated his move before Revis stepped forward and aimed his weapon at Hamanth. The two others closed in behind Revis.

"Give me the module," Revis demanded.

The Doctor then noticed Rosita get up, grab the metal box, and hit Mysoll and Turengent on their heads with sharp blows that knocked them out. However, Revis still had the upper hand. He distanced himself from both, but kept his weapon aimed at the Doctor and again demanded the module.

The Doctor slowly turned over the module and Revis immediately left. The Doctor checked on Hamanth and confirmed that he would be all right while Rosita took off her scarf and bound Mysoll's and Turengent's hands behind their backs.

"Doctor," Rosita began, "you said the tano module is very powerful. What could that man do with it?"

The Doctor began to softly shake Hamanth's shoulder to wake him up. "I'm more concerned about the beacon. It's very powerful, too, and that tano module will find its way to safety."

"How do you know that?"

"Because its ultimate destination is fixed in time."

Hamanth slowly regained consciousness and interrogated Mysoll and Turengent in the cave after they did the same. All they would reveal, however, is that their intent was to dismantle both the beacon and the module to create a weapon too powerful to be trusted in the hands of Neshodin Leegat and Revee Meersod. In response, Hamanth contacted the United Teams of Amelians to get long-range transportation halted on the planet.

"Revis couldn't have gotten far, and he won't," Hamanth assured the Doctor and Rosita.

"If transportation has been suspended, Revis might use the beacon and module against the planet for ransom, if that wasn't the original plan," the Doctor suggested.

"And if that was the plan," Hamanth added, "he could start it now." Another thought entered Hamanth's mind and he turned to Mysoll and Turengent to ask them their species.

"Corydaan," Mysoll answered. "All three of us."

The Doctor frowned slightly. "Back to the matter at hand, Revis will need specialized equipment to access the power cores within the beacon and the module."

"They're very dangerous, aren't they?"

"The whole planet is at stake, Rosita."

Taking their prisoners with them, the Doctor, Hamanth, and Rosita went back to the TARDIS and journeyed to a small engineering firm.

"I've asked around, Doctor," Rosita said as he approached the Doctor. "Revis didn't come here."

Hamanth soon joined the pair and reported the same.

"We should head to Amel," Hamanth said. "I'll contact the United Teams for help. I believe a warehouse there stores the technology to harness the power, but it's a vast place."

The trio met up with the Skyline Warriors and the Civic Rangers to canvas a warehouse they found empty due to the time of day. Shots eventually rang through the building and everyone gathered to see that Revis had used the beacon as a device to emit energy beams. He was battling two Civic Rangers. Their teammates, Hamanth, and the Skyline Warriors shot at Revis with bullet guns and laser guns, but no one could get close to Revis.

The Doctor tried to shield Rosita from the danger.

"Is this a typical trip for you, Doctor?"

"Well, my trips aren't usually this dangerous."

Rosita shot the Doctor a look.

"Fine, they are, but they usually don't involve so many guns."

Rosita leaned back on a metal apparatus, but the Doctor cautioned her away.

"That's a flame barrel. It shoots outs enormous amounts of heat. I wanted to make sure it wasn't plugged in first."

Rosita turned to look at the battle. Two Skyline Warriors were down and the rest were no closer to defeating Revis. Rosita ran towards a staircase with the Doctor following.

"Where are you going?"

"I saw two of those on the lower level when I was with Hamanth. Can you show me how to turn it on?"

The Doctor realized what Rosita was contemplating. He helped her place a flame barrel underneath an estimation of Revis' position and turned on the barrel."

Seconds later on the floor above them, Revis felt the heat. He jumped away from the location where he stood and dropped the beacon on that spot. A Civic Ranger took advantage of the situation and shot Revis in the head, killing him.

Hamanth and the two teams congratulated each other while the Doctor investigated the beacon.

"It's toast. Completely useless now, just junk."

"Good," Hamanth noted as he joined the Doctor and Rosita. "What about the module?"

The two teams joined the trio.

"The module is still in good shape."

"I would think so," Amaregneth, a Skyline Warrior said. "That's not any module. It appears that Neshodin Leegat and Revee Meersod were unable to obtain a module they originally sought, so they stole this one."

"This isn't just any module, is it?" the Doctor asked. "That's not even what it was made for."

"It is still a vastly powerful source of energy and its secret origin is a topic of many legends here. Its design is the basis for all tano modules," Amaregneth informed the group. "We are grateful that the villains involved did not seem to be aware of this information."

Rosita noticed a subtle look of serenity wash over the Doctor's face.

"If it's a part of Strick culture, then it should stay here," the Doctor said.

"But you said it was very dangerous, Doctor," Rosita remarked. "What if someone steals it again?"

The leader of the Civic Rangers, Agellen, spoke up. "It does rightfully belong to the Stricks, but it should be kept hidden. That is an ideal way to revere this piece of our culture without endangering lives," she said.

"Will no one ever know where it is?" a Civic Ranger asked.

"Perhaps some among us Stricks will know, as a precaution."

The Doctor smiled. "Stricks know better than to seek it out without due cause."

"You are correct," a Skyline Warrior responded.

Amaregneth chuckled. "That will only enhance the legend. Within a century, the mystery of its location will be a vital addendum to the stories."

A solemn look returned to the Doctor's face and again, Rosita noticed the change.

"What's wrong, Doctor?"

"Oh, nothing. Stricks, we shall leave the module in your collective care. Hamanth, if all business here is resolved, shall I take you home?"

"Thank you, Doctor, but I think I should stay a little while longer and find my way home later to deal with a certain officer that gave Revis information from Tanthycna and Albenes."

"Then Rosita and I will be off."

"Thank you, Doctor," Hamanth said. "Tell me, is that your real name?"

"It's as good as a real name."

"And yours, Rosita?"

"That's my real name. Rosita Farisi."

"A pleasure to spend this time with you. If you ever travel through again, please contact me so I can make your trip more enjoyable than this one. Captain Hamanth Yodellis Alsoryn is my title and name."

The Doctor exhaled sharply, nodded, and headed to the TARDIS with Rosita.

"Wait," Agellen said. She held a small crystal in her hand and gave it to the Doctor. "I removed this crystal to reduce its power. For your recovery of this treasure and your role in that villain's defeat, you should hold a piece of it."

"Thank you."

In the TARDIS, Rosita finally confronted the Doctor.

"I've been around enough men to know when something is bothering them. What's wrong?"

The Doctor looked Rosita in the eyes. "Amaregneth mentioned the legend. It will grow. Eventually, stories in many planets will talk about the incredible power that this mighty device can hold. It's all a lie. Removing this small piece of crystal would have damaged the internal matrix and nullified the power, and Agellan didn't realize it. Nonetheless, a race called the Daleks will hear about the legends and seek the power, bringing war to Stricium."

"What will happen then?"

"The end of the planet."

Rosita could tell the Doctor was upset. She saw his right hand on the TARDIS console and she put her right hand on his.

Soon, the Doctor and Rosita returned to London in 1852.

"Minutes after we left."

"Thank you, Doctor."

"Good-bye, Rosita."

Rosita smiled.

The Doctor closed the TARDIS doors and looked down at the crystal fragment in his left hand. Images of horrible battles at Stricium raced through the Doctor's mind. He saw again the death and destruction that the Daleks forced upon the planet, and that was before two fleets from Gallifrey arrived. He smelled again the distinct odor of burnt Strick flesh. This all happened because of the stories of a foreigner named Captain Yodellis coming to Stricium and burying a device of great power in a secret location near Amel. The Amelian Culture House would be the first to fall in the crossfire when the fleets from Gallifrey fought the Daleks. Two days later, the Solarium Panatica would suffer the same fate.

The Doctor turned his attention back to the crystal and stored it away. He shoved away the memories of war and remembered Amy and Rory. In them he saw justification for optimism. It was time to see his friends again and be happy, so the Doctor set the coordinates for the honeymoon planet.

END.


End file.
